Avestra
The Eternal Age
Scope
The motivation behind building Avestra
- D&D 5e world for campaigns due to previous worlds being lost
- A stomping ground to get back into writing
The goal of the project
- A low magic or non-high world that can be a basis for building the rest of the world such as other continents or even other worlds
- I'm creating a D&D world to build multiple campaigns but also create works of writing out of it
- I want my audience to get a good basis for the world that isn't filled with spoilers and asks questions
- I want my audience to enjoy writings of a fantastical world
Avestra's Unique Selling point
- The Eternals and their presence in the world of Avestra
- The return of Ano as a morally gray character
- The mysterious of Avestra scattered throughout its history
Theme
Genre
- Medieval
- Fantasy
- Speculative
Reader Experience
- There is always some ancient mystery to unlock in Avestra
- It should have equal amounts wonder and terror as the world is explored
- Secrets in crypts and ancient temples and lands filled with creatures and monsters too horrifying to describe
Reader Tone
- Somewhere in the middle
- People live without knowing what its like to wield magic or face down horrifying threats.
- They can live easy lives but sometimes, the monsters from the darkness make their way forward and destroy them
- Sometimes civilized races can turn against each other and tear at each other or even their own race
- There are eldritch entities that wish to destroy people just for existing or are even unknowable
Recurring Themes
- A peaceful village where there are barely any issues except quality of life ones
- Raids by Aberrations to convert or exterminate a village of innocents
- A kingdom struggling to keep all the different races together
- Races staying on good terms as they work well together
Character Agency
- Depending on how far the players go, they have the potential to cause or end worlds or discover facts that could change how people view the world or races within it.
- But as strong as the players can be, there is always a lingering threat that can appear at any moment and decimate them if they are not able to defeat it or escape form it.
Focus
Drama
The War Between Eternals and Elders has been going since the start of the Eternal Age. However, there has been little fighting between the two directly. But the point still stands: Who are the Elders? And why did the Eternals return only when they targetted Avestra.
Supposedly, Avestra was what split Ano and Eno apart, causing them to fight in the Eternal Civil War. However, the two can be seen randomly together. And there are some Eternals who believe that Avestra had nothing to do with the conflict. So what was it that set these two brothers apart? And is that still an issue that keeps them apart?
The Underoads are an intriguing part of Avestra history yet no one knows anything about them. Expeditions into the depths have only started. But what happened that caused Avestra to forget about the Underoad? What happened to the supposed Empires that ruled the depths of Avestra? And why do these Warforged and Simic Hybrids awake and leave with no memory of their past?
The Blood War continues to rage between Demon and Devilkind. The Celestials still struggle to recover from both their near defeat by the Fiends and the devastation by the Elders and their Aberrant allies. With Avestra now open, countless Outsiders now stalk its lands seeking pawns for their games or seeking allies that can turn the tide in the countless extraplanar conflicts to their favor.
Across the land, the Aberrations have festered in zones tainted by their ill magic. Both above and below ground, they wait for word from their masters on what to do next. Some have even become independent factions, choosing their own orders as they attempt to spread across Avestra. They take people or commit raids day and night and people fear what they have planned and what new horror they will unleash upon Avestra.
There are still issues the locals have to deal with besides these global issues.
- The War For Unification. The Crystalian Empire seeks to unite the Aerin valley under one banner. They subjugated the nations around Lake Loshill and stopped a revolt by their former Imperial Heir. Now with the Dragon of the Bloody Rose working with the Crystal Emperor, they have already taken over Beru. And the rest of the Aerin Valley could be next. Whatever the case, soon war will descend upon the Aerin people once again.
- The Sgandian Invaison. The Muspel giants have waited and gathered their strength. With the world still reeling from the Elder invasion a millennium prior, they launched a massive invasion in two directions. They now fight on both the Howling Coast of Edrinia and the Yggdragun-Deradamian coast of Alus. Serving as an entry point, they will spread their empire across the realm and call Ignis to have their patron god elevate them to godhood.
- Nubian-Virush Conflict. Virush invaded the north during a time of turmoil for the Jovun people. They thought it'd be an easy victory but that changed when Nubia and Cico raided their shores. When it seemed too easy, Nubia decided to take it one step further and declared war on Virush, hoping to take their island holdings. However, that resulted in Virush quickly building up a navy to fight back against the invaders. Now Virush fights a two-front way, one of aggression and one of defense.
- The War For Divinity. The Brandovian Empire and Haiakage Empire invade the southern shores of Alus. Brandovia fights to rid the world of the concept of gods while Haiakage fights to temper their strength in the crucible of combat and exterminate the weak from the world in the name of their gods. The Ziminsi League has already lost a portion of the mainland to the Brandovian invasion while Racid struggles to combat Haiakage at sea to protect themselves and the Kingdom of Bra'Lakun. With their religion, freedom, and lives at stake, this could spiral into a conflict yet unseen on Alus's shores.
- The Monsters Rise. Avevstra has been no stranger to monsters but recently, people have seen an unprecedented amount of creatures begin to surface across the land. With wyverns and supposed "elder dragons" rising across the land and even rare types of creatures coming out of Aberration-infested lands, this could signal the rise of something far worse to come. It may be time for new adventurers to take up swords and stave to fend off the wave of monsters to come.